Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2010-11: Aleksander Barkov, the son of former Russian national team and Tappara Tampere forward Alexander Barkov, played 25 games for Tappara’s U20 team as a 15-year-old and represented Finland in international competition at the U17 and U16 levels. He scored 5 goals with 12 assists and had six penalty minutes in the U20 SM-Liiga. Barkov scored 10 goals with 8 assists in 13 games for Tappara’s U18 team and led Tappara to the U16 playoff finals, scoring 7 goals with 17 assists in 10 games. Tappara captured a silver medal.

2011-12: Barkov made his SM-Liiga debut at 16-years-old, playing in 32 games for Tappara, and represented Finland in the 2013 U20 and U18 World Junior Championship tournaments. In 32 SM-Liiga games he scored 7 goals with 9 assists and was plus-five with 4 penalty minutes; averaging 13:32 minutes of ice time. Tappara missed the playoffs after finishing in 12th place. In five games with Tapppara’s U20 team he scored 2 goals with 3 assists. Barkov skated in all seven games at the U20 WJC for fourth-place Finland, scoring 1 goal with 3 assists and had 1 goal with 2 assists and 27 penalty minutes in seven games at the U18 WJC.

2012-13: Barkov played a key role for Tappara in what was the Tampere clubs best season in a decade. Tappara’s second-leading scorer behind veteran Ville Nieminen, Barkov scored 21 goals with 27 assists and was plus-18 with 8 penalty minutes in 53 games. Tappara finished in second place and reached the SM-Liiga playoff finals. Barkov had five assists and was plus-three in five playoff games before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury early in Game 5 of a quarterfinal game against HIFK. The injury prevented Barkov from playing for Finland in the U18 WJC. He skated for Finland in Ufa at the 2013 U20 World Junior Championship. In six games he scored 3 goals with 4 assists and was plus-two with 6 penalty minutes. Barkov was the top-ranked European skater in Central Scouting’s mid-term rankings prior to the 2013 NHL Draft, and remained the top-ranked Euro skater in the CSS final rankings.

Talent Analysis

Aleksander Barkov possesses the rare combination of size and outstanding technical skills along with an ability to quickly analyze situations. He is very mature in terms of hockey sense at an early age and has had success playing against much older players in Finland's SM-Liiga. His skating ability is still developing but is not a weakness. Does not play an abrasive game but has the size and strength to withstand the rigors of the more physical North American game.

Future

Despite the fact that Barkov will not turn eighteen until just before fall training camp starts, his spot on the Florida roster is all but a certainty. He has already played nearly two full seasons in Finland’s top league and has proved that he is capable of succeeding against veteran professional players. Barkov has the look of a perennial All-Star in the NHL and should be a contender for a Calder Trophy this season.

Photo: Forward Jonathan Drouin, selected third overall in the 2013 NHL Draft, will begin his pro career at 2014-15. Drouin is an early favorite to win the 2015 Calder Trophy. (courtesy of Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)

Photo: Juho Lammikko comes to North America for his first year of Canadian major junior hockey after spending the 2013-14 season in Finland. Lammikko was picked in the third round of the 2014 NHL Draft. (courtesy Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

The Florida Panthers prospect system continues to be heavily weighted towards the NCAA and minor professional leagues, with a lot of talent concentrated at those levels. However, the talent pool as a whole is still substantial despite recent graduations, and should continue to provide the Panthers with a steady stream of high-quality prospects for the next few years.

The Florida Panthers head into the 2014 NHL Draft with the first overall pick. While Panthers general manager Dale Tallon is noncommittal about trading the pick, he will listen to offers that are presented.

Photo: Selected second overall in the 2013 NHL Draft, forward Aleksander Barkov made an immediate impact for the Florida Panthers. Barkov suffered a knee injury during the 2014 Olympics and has been on injured reserve ever since. (courtesy of Rich Graessle/Icon SMI)

There have been several notable changes since the fall when the Florida Panthers last Top 20 list was compiled. Nick Bjugstad and Drew Shore have graduated, and Florida added high-potential center prospect Brandon Pirri at the trade deadline. Several players have begun getting extended opportunities in the NHL as the regular season winds down and the Panthers playoff hopes slip quietly to the side.

The Spring edition of the Hockey's Future ranking of the Top 50 NHL prospects concludes with the prospects ranked 1-10. The top prospect is Florida Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov, who narrowly beat out Jonathan Drouin for top honors in the ranking.